Since starting the Healthy Mumma journey I have discovered so many of my Instagram and Facebook followers are intolerant to dairy. I try to limit the amount of dairy I consume in a day but haven’t given it up altogether. I still enjoy my coffee in the morning with cow’s milk, I’ve tried other alternatives with my coffee but I just don’t enjoy it and my one pleasure as a Mum is buying a coffee from my favourite local cafe!
In saying that other than the occasional natural greek yoghurt (full fat) I don’t have milk, cheese, ice cream or any other types of dairy. Actually I lie I do occasional have goats feta too but no other cheeses. The paleo lifestyle omits dairy from their diet as the theory behind it is that many of us do not have sufficient levels of enzymes necessary to digest it. To me this explains why so many of us are dairy intolerant.
The good news is there are so many other delicious alternatives that I have discovered instead of having dairy. These include:
Alternatives to Cows Milk
Instead of Cows Milk try any of the nut milks including Almond Milk, Cashew Milk, Macadamia Milk, Hazelnut Milk or try Coconut Milk or Rice Milk (Brown Rice). My favourite is definitely almond milk and I do love coconut milk too. Make sure they are unsweetened and not full of sugar.
Alternatives to Yoghurt
Instead of natural greek yoghurt try coconut yoghurt. It is so delicious however is a little pricey compared to other yoghurts but it’s worth it.
Alternatives to Ice Cream
Instead of ice cream made from dairy you will find the supermarkets are all starting to stock a lot more variety when it comes to dairy free ice cream alternatives. Generally the alternatives are all made from coconut milk or cream and are so delicious. My favourite brand at the moment is Cocofrio and they have a great range of delicious dairy, gluten and fructose free ice creams. I have to say that I actually prefer eating this to normal ice cream as it’s so delicious and the best part is its guilt free! Just a tip when buying dairy free ice creams, watch the sugar content, some of them can be loaded with sugar.
Alternatives to Cheese
There are a few alternatives to cheese that I have discovered including a cashew cheese which consists of soaking cashews overnight and blending them with stock and adding a few other ingredients. The other alternative I have found is Nutritional Yeast or it can be called Savoury Yeast Flakes, this has a cheesy taste without the dairy and is a popular ingredient for vegans. It can be found at your local health food store and generally it’s stocked at supermarkets.
If you can’t fully go off dairy, choose the full fat and not fat free version i.e. natural greek yoghurt. You may think you are doing the right thing by choosing the low fat versions however they are generally loaded with more unhealthy refined sugars to compensate for the fat. As I’ve blogged before, check the labels of everything you buy, flavoured yoghurt is generally also loaded with unhealthy sugar so stick to the natural flavours and add your own healthy flavourings i.e. natural sweeteners, berries, fruit etc.
I have to admit by reducing the amount of dairy I consume it has had the same positive affects as when I quit grains. So why not try some alternatives to dairy and see how it makes you feel!
